So The Drama
by Rocinante
Summary: Kim makes the ultimate sacrifice to stop Drakken from stopping her. Contains scenes of a graphic and violent nature.
1. Kim's Day

DISCLAIMER: I in no way own Kim Possible nor any of the characters therein.  
  
WARNING: Contains scenes of a graphic and violent nature.  
  
  
  
  
Kim's Day:  
  
  
The quiet darkness of Kim Possible's bedroom was broken by the sharp peep-peep-bee-deep of the Kimmunicator. Again the small device sounded, and a tossed mass of auburn hair stirred and moved from beneath the covers. Kim swept the hair from over her face, and reached for the button, trying to make out the face through her barely opened eyes.  
  
"What up, Wade?" Kim mumbled. "Besides me, now." She glanced at her clock radio. "Yikes - 4:30 AM??"  
  
Wade looked back through the screen, the same half-asleep look on his face. "I know. I couldn't believe it either. I just wanted to check to see if you're absolutely sure you want your whole website redesigned before noon? And how did you get ready for bed so quick??"  
  
"Huh??" said Kim, more awake after what she heard. "You have to lay off the snacks before bed, Wade. I haven't called you at all since before yesterday. I was out of school with some 24-hour bug. I like the website just fine the way you made it, and I went to bed early, just like I always do on a school night. Actually, I've been in bed all day and night, taking medicine."  
  
"It's way too early to be playing me like this," replied Wade. "You just called me like five minutes ago and demanded it be redone from the ground up, and you wanted it now. I still don't see how you got out of your clothes and into your pajamas so quick."  
  
Kim stared into the screen. Wade was acting like he heard what he heard, but of course, that was impossible. "Go back to bed, Wade," she said. "I'm doing the same. Oh, and don't change the website." The room went dark again as she switched off the Kimmunicator, and flopped her head back down on the pillow, her auburn hair once again draping over her face like a silky curtain.  
  
Later that morning, Kim was nearly late for school, oversleeping after being awakened so early. She raced down the hall to her locker, where she ran into Ron Stoppable, her best friend, and sidekick, when she was saving the world. "Hey Kim," Ron greeted her with a big smile. Kim returned a "Hey."  
  
"Boy, I just can't wait until tonight," said Ron. "It's not every day your best friend says they'll treat you to all the Nacos you can eat! I still can't believe it!"  
  
Kim gave Ron a strange look. "I can't believe it either," she said, "Because I didn't say that. Where did you hear it?"  
  
"Well...*you* told me," Ron continued. "You called me last night and said that you wanted to find out if I was 'Stoppable' at the Bueno Nacho counter." As Ron finished his statement, Rufus popped out of his pants pocket, folded his arms and nodded, then licked his lips and rubbed his front paws together, uttering a quick series of "num-num-num's."  
  
"Ron...I'll gladly buy you one order of Nacos - but for me to buy all you can eat, I'd probably have to take a job at Club Banana just to pay for it! Now...don't you think I know better than that?"  
  
Ron looked confused for a moment; then his face fell a bit. "It's not very cool to play your best friend like that, Kim."  
  
Kim put her hand on Ron's shoulder. "Ron, I would remember if I had said something like that. And I wouldn't play you…but I didn't say it. Maybe you need to follow the advice I gave Wade, and stop with the snacks before bed."   
  
"Sheesh, Kim," said Ron. Well...okay. I'll take you up on the first order - and you can owe me the rest!" With that, Ron ran off to his first class.  
  
The rest of Kim's day went much like her morning, with people mentioning things they said she had promised or done the day before, and then becoming angered when she denied having said what they had claimed they heard from her. "Talk about Accusation Nation!" she sighed as she pulled on the skirt of her cheerleading uniform. Maybe it was all a bad dream, she thought. I'll just wake up any minute now, and the day will be staring for real, just like it's supposed to.  
  
Kim's thoughts turned now to cheerleading practice, one place she could always work off her negative feelings through dances and jumps and coordinating complex formations with the rest of the squad. As she approached the auditorium, Kim heard the familiar voices of the rest of the cheer squad. "Good," she said to herself. "At least they're in an agreeable mood. Maybe this dream is finally over" As she swung the double doors open and walked through, the squad was falling out of a three-tiered pyramid, and tumbling onto the floor, each girl landing in a split with pom-pons raised high. A shrill voice boomed out from the bleachers, and Kim bristled at the sound.  
  
"That was just perfect, girls," shouted out Bonnie Rockwaller, Kim's foe on the cheer squad. "Much better than if Kim were leading it." Bonnie's gaze then shot over to the approaching Kim. "Ohhh, and speaking of which, look who finally decided to take a break from hanging out with her dorky 'sidekick' and spend a little time with us!"  
  
The rest of the girls laughed quietly as Kim marched up to Bonnie, a sneer washing over her face. "Just what do you think you're doing, *Bonnie*?"  
  
Bonnie smiled smugly. "Exactly what you told me to do, *Kim*."  
  
"And that would be what, exactly," said Kim, looking at Bonnie now out of one eye of disbelief. "My short-term memory seems to have been failing me today, but then I always make sure not to waste much time dwelling on any conversation with you..."  
  
"I distinctly remember this particular conversation," Bonnie shot back. "You told me to assemble the squad 20 minutes early today and run them through the drills."  
  
Kim narrowed her eyes. "Now that conversation I would remember. It would be just before starting my stay at the local insane asylum! I never told you anything even resembling that."  
  
Bonnie began to giggle evilly. "Well I hope your cheerleading uniform fits over your straight jacket, dear. You said it yesterday in the caf. Not only that, but Tara and Ross were with me, and they heard it, too!"  
  
Kim looked over at Tara and Ross, who nodded in agreement. She then turned back to Bonnie, whose grin had widened even more.   
  
"I have witnesses. Gonna go back on your word, which seems to be gold to most other people for reasons which escape me - hmm?"  
  
This was the last straw. Kim didn't know what was causing the events of this day, but she knew she had reached the end of her rope - and she had to find out what was going on. "Have your fun, Bonnie," she sighed. "Run the squad today. I have something more important to do at the moment."  
  
"Oh, you'll have much more time to do 'more important things,'" Bonnie hissed. "After people see how much better the squad is under my leadership, they'll become as forgetful about the name Kim Possible as you are about everything else!"  
  
Kim threw the doors of the auditorium open and walked out to the echoing sound of Bonnie's laughter. 


	2. Drakken's Lair  the Plan

In Drakken's Lair:  
  
A grid of TV monitors lined one wall of the den, giving off the only light, save the glowing embers in the large fireplace to the left. Scenes of Kim's classmates and fellow cheerleaders repeated over and over, a cacophony of Kim's voice tangled together in an endless stream of mixed speech, echoing the "promises" she made to people the day before.  
  
Two figures sat in the dancing light of the monitors, shifting their gaze from one screen to another. One of them was doubled over in laughter, lifting his head while gasping for air, and bursting out again, tears streaming down his leathery blue face. The other sat, the cascade of her raven hair spilling over her gloved hands as she rested her head in them, the screens highlighting the smooth features of her green skin.  
  
Drakken finally straightened up, wiping a tear from his eye, still uttering sighs of lingering laughter. "Shego," he exclaimed. "I can't believe you're not just beside yourself in laughter over the sheer brilliance and simplicity of my plan!"  
  
Shego turned and sneered at Drakken, her head still in her hands, her hair falling over one over her evilly emerald eyes. "Right now, the only thing I'm beside is you, you giggling ninny - and, the plan was what again, exactly? A Video Day in the Life of Kim Possible?"  
  
"Shego - this is NOT Kim Possible. This video comes from the clones I released on Middleton High School the day she stayed home with a stomach flu. Don't you remember when you dressed as a senior and slipped a virus into her soda just the day before?"  
  
"Yes, I remember," sighed the voluptuous green vixen. "Half the football team followed me around for the rest of the day--" She shot straight up in her chair. "Wait - CLONES!?? That's what you were doing in the basement for two weeks straight? And you wouldn't let me near the place? You don't remember what happened the last time you messed around with clones? You didn't learn your lesson then???"  
  
Drakken beamed. "Ahh, but these are clones with a difference."  
  
"You mean these won't melt if your pour soda over them? What this time...ketchup?"  
  
"Let me explain," Drakken shot back. "The difference is, they are not really clones in a true sense. They're a mix of clone, cybernetic and holographic technology. They have the skeletons of the Bebes, they're powered by a computer system capable of emulating Kim Possible's actions, expressions, voice and mannerisms to a T. And they're covered with a DNA-generated skin which masks any attempts to detect that they're NOT Kim Possible."  
  
"Seems like a lot of work for nothing," Shego sank back into her chair. "Building a bunch of cyber-robo-holo-clone-o whatevers, just to imitate our arch foe. Wouldn't it have been easier to just go beat her up when she had the flu?"  
  
A serious expression now filled Dr. Drakken's face. "Shego," he explained, "What happens every time Kim Possible fights us?"  
  
"You mean besides the fact that she wins and we lose?"  
  
"Exactly. Now, what does that suggest to you?"  
  
"Umm...that we should give up trying to take over the world by evil and take up e-commerce?"  
  
"*No*!"  
  
"Okay, I give," Shego sighed. "What does that suggest to me?"  
  
"If I can't defeat Kim Possible," continued Drakken, "And you certainly can't defeat her-"  
  
"*Hey*!"  
  
"Oh, face facts, Shego. You're obviously no match for her, physically. ANY-way...it suggests that the only one who can beat Kim Possible - is Kim Possible!"  
  
Shego leaned forward. "Uhh, didn't you try this before, Dr. D? And it didn't work then either?"  
  
"Yes, but this time I hit Kim Possible in a way we hadn't thought of before now. I didn't send in the clones to defeat her - I sent in the clones to defeat something she prizes very highly - her reputation. By making everyone think that Kim is lying and going back on her word, people will doubt and discredit her - and finally, after enough humiliation and alienation, she will slink away into the shadows, defeated by her own self-doubt! Then we'll be rid of her forever! How could this be any more brilliant???"  
  
Shego stared at Drakken for a moment; then grabbed her stomach and burst into a fit of uncontrollable laughter, falling out of her chair and into a fetal position on the floor.  
  
"A-haaaa, you get it now, right? You see it?" he asked.  
  
"Kind of," Shego gasped, "But I'm laughing more at what you said."  
  
"What??"  
  
"'Send in the clones'? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" 


	3. Meanwhile, back in Middleton

That Evening - Middleton:  
  
  
Kim flopped onto her bed with her face buried in her folded arms. "What is happening?" she moaned. "People say I told them things that I never said to them - or at least I don't remember saying them..." She then sat up and clutched her pillow. "Maybe I did say those things - maybe I'm going to la-la land. Maybe I just have too much on my plate. But what to give up? I can't quit cheerleading - that's half my life! I can't quit high school, either. I sure can't give up saving the world - the fate of the world is in my hands nearly every day!"  
  
Kim leaned forward, hanging her head until it touched her legs, still holding the pillow tightly. "I've got to get a grip," she moaned, "but for the first time in my life - I don't know what to get a grip on! I...guess I could just keep 'my word' to everyone, and do the things they say I told them I would do...'my word.' It doesn't even feel like my words are mine anymore..." the last of her words trailed off as she began to sob quietly against her pillow.   
  
The beeps of the Kimmunicator interrupted Kim. She quickly wiped her eyes, sniffled and grabbed the device. Wade appeared on the small screen. "*Kim*? Kim???"  
  
"Yes Wade, I'm right here - or isn't this working right, either?" Kim tapped the Kimmunicator against the heel of her hand several times, and stared into the screen.  
  
Wade stared back at Kim in disbelief. "Okay, this just got major weird. Who are you?"  
  
"What???" Kim shot back. I'm Kim Possible. Duh! Maybe I should ask who you are!"  
  
"Duh, yourself. I was trying to locate the Kimmunicator for, uhhhh...it was missing." Wade then shook his head and looked over his right shoulder, then back at the screen. "Now that we have that much established - are you the real Kim?"  
  
Kim pinched herself on the arm. "*Ow*! Okay, it's not a dream. Wade, this is so not funny. I've had a bad enough day as it is. What do you mean, am I the real Kim? How many do you think there are??"  
  
Wade looked to his right again. "Welllll..."  
  
Another figure leaned into view beside Wade. Kim's eyes got as big as saucers, and her jaw dropped wide open. There, next to Wade - was *herself*. The other "Kim" was dressed in the same blue jeans and green midriff top she was wearing...her hair was the same shade of red...the eyes were the same shade of green, the only difference was the redness from Kim crying. It was just like looking into a mirror. The other "Kim" had a wide smile, and was waving her hand slowly at the screen  
  
"Now you see my dilemma," said Wade.  
  
"The only 'dilemma' we have here is who - or what - *that* is," growled Kim. "Wade, send a high-pitched sonic disturbance through the Kimmunicator."  
  
Wade pressed a button, and an electronic scream emitted from the device. Kim winced and gritted her teeth. After about ten seconds, the sound stopped. Kim looked back into the screen. "Ta-da." Then her eyes narrowed. "Now," she sneered, "send the same disturbance - locally."  
  
Wade pressed a few more buttons, and the sonic scream began again - but in his room this time. The other "Kim" got a blank stare on her face, and started to vibrate. "Wade, what's up with this?" "she" shouted. "Why are you doing this to m-" There was a loud crackling noise, and the other "Kim" collapsed to the floor.   
  
Kim looked into the device with a wry smile. "Still confused, Wade?"   
  
"Kim, I just don't believe it," said Wade.   
  
"A clone," replied Kim. "This so reeks of Dr. Drakken."  
  
"Ever since the thing with Drakken's cybernetic Bebes, and then his unstable clones, I put detectors in my room, in case he tried anything like that again. But this 'Kim' didn't trip any of them!"  
  
Kim reached over to a glass she had on her nightstand and put her finger over the top of the straw, capturing a small amount of soda in it. She then brought it to her nose, and let the liquid run down over her face. "Look Wade - I'm not a clone."  
  
Wade had been looking at the other "Kim." He said, "This must be the 'Kim' who called me early this morning." He poked at her. "Wow...she's like...real."  
  
"Well, this explains the day I've had. Starting with you, all day I've had people telling me I promised them things that I never said. This 'Kim' must have gone to school in my place while I was sick! Are you sure there's no way to tell her from the real me?"   
  
Wade looked the other "Kim" over. "Her skin must be genetically-generated. That would mask cybernetics or other systems from detection." His eyes widened, and he leaned down. "I don't think this is the end of your problems, Kim," he said. "This fell out of her, uhh, its pocket."  
  
He held a black patch up to the screen so Kim could see. It had the number "22" in green letters.  
  
"Ohhhh, grreeaat..." Kim groaned. "This means there are more of them. But how many more??"  
  
"Looks like you get a chance to find out," beamed Wade. "It's a good thing villains are so proud of their work." He then turned the patch over so the back was showing on the screen.  
  
"Drakken Evil Industries, Inc. Taking Over the World, So You Don't Have To"  
  
A low growl escaped from Kim's lips as she read the rest the patch. The last line said - "Made in Cancun, Mexico."  
  
"Wade, you may have a long night ahead of you," she said. "I'm calling Ron. We're going to Mexico on a school night."  
  
"Be careful, Kim," Wade cautioned. "I don't know how strong these things are, or what they can do."  
  
"Oh, I know what they can do," Kim replied. "They can all drop dead. Like the line from the movie - 'there can be only one' - and that's ME." 


	4. The Cancun Lair

Cancun, Mexico  
  
The sleek black helicopter set down at the edge of a thick forest. As the rotors slowed from their frenzied pace, Kim turned to the pilot, while removing her helmet and goggles.  
  
"Thanks so much for the ride, Julio."  
  
"Ees no problema," said Julio. "Thanks to you, my goat business was es-saved."  
  
Kim grinned sheepishly and waved her hand. "Aww. Working out a rotating milking schedule your staff could handle was-"  
  
"No big?" chimed Ron.  
  
"Uhh...yeah...that." Kim turned to shoot a look at Ron out of the corner of her eye, then hopped out of the copter.  
  
"Bye Julio," said Ron, as Kim's hand reached in and grabbed a handful of his shirt. "And thanks aga-a-a-ainnnn!" as Kim jerked him out of his seat.  
  
Then both held their hair while the helicopter rose and flew out of sight. Kim backhanded Ron's arm. "What are you doing? 'No big' is mine!"  
  
"Yeah, but 'No big' is major cool!" piped Ron. "I had to say it just once. I don't have any cool catch phrases. All I have is 'Boo-ya'. That's not even a word!"  
  
Kim sighed, and dropped her head. "Okaaay. But just this once, Ron. I've had enough stolen from me lately." She started up a small rise. Now let's see if we can find Drakken's lair, and put an end to this clone thing once and for-*whoa*!"  
  
Ron caught up to Kim, and gulped. About an eighth of a mile away was indeed Drakken's lair. A low-rise dark gray building that covered at least ten acres. Searchlights lined the roof, and a high fence topped with razor wire surrounded the entire compound.  
  
"This...is...sick...and...wrong," said Ron under his breath.  
  
"There," said Kim, grinning as she pulled the Kimmunicator from her pants pocket. "That one's yours."  
  
"Yeah, but it's not as cool as 'No big'."  
  
Kim rolled her eyes at Ron, then looked into the Kimmunicator. "Wade, scan the area for infrared sensor beams."  
  
"I'm not picking up anything," replied Wade. "Funny, a place that big, and no security. Nothing on the doors, windows...the fence isn't even electrified."  
  
"We'll call you when we're inside," said Kim, stuffing the device back into her pocket, and turning to Ron. "Let's get through that fence."  
  
They sneaked through the underbrush until they were next to the tall chain-link fence. Kim pulled a small laser-like torch from her pocket, and began burning through the fence. After about five minutes, she pulled back a small section of the fence, and motioned Ron through it.  
  
"We have to be on our toes when we get in there, Ron," said Kim in a low voice. "We still don't know how strong these clones are. I don't even know how *many* of them there are."  
  
"Not to mention having to deal with Drakken's thugs," added Ron. "And Shego. She just scares me half to-"  
  
Ron was stopped in mid-sentence by a bright pair of headlights coming down a gravel road to the compound. "Get down!" snapped Kim.   
  
They both stayed to the ground, and watched the large purple truck turn and stop while the gates to the compound slowly swung open. It rumbled up to the front door of the building and stopped. Two of Drakken's henchmen got out, their orange uniforms lit by the searchlights, which turned to the truck. They went to the back of the trailer, and swung open the doors. Kim and Ron stared in wide-eyed disbelief as "Kim" after "Kim" began to emerge from the trailer, jump to the ground, and file into the lair.   
  
Kim started to count under her breath as each "Kim" jumped from the truck. "Seven...eight..."  
  
Ron picked up the count. "Nine...ten...eleven...this...is...sick...and...wrong...seventeen..."  
  
"The patch on the one that went to Wade's house said '22'," said Kim. "How many of these things has Drakken made?"  
  
Kim thought to herself. How many are there? How many? 30? 1000? How is anybody going to trust me when there are so many of "me" running around? The thoughts that earlier in the afternoon brought her to tears now just caused her anger to rise. If there was just some way to figure out how Drakken is creating these copies of "me," I might be able to stop him from ever making any more. But how to get rid of the ones he's made already? We should just blow the whole place up, and deal with whatever "Kims" are left over...  
  
The last of the Kim clones exited the trailer and walked into the lair. "Nineteen...twenty...twenty-one," counted Ron. Including the one that Wade aced, that makes twenty-two, Kim. Let's go get 'em!"  
  
Kim continued to pore over the situation in her mind, recalling everything that had happened, and how it was affecting her life - not to mention her reputation. Suddenly her eyes got very wide. She turned to Ron and said, "I know how to put a stop to this once and for all. Stay...*here*." She started to get up...then she stopped and, turning back to Ron, stroked the side of his face, and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek and a tight hug. She then looked at him with her warm, full eyes and said under her breath, "I'm so sorry."  
  
Ron looked at her, not sure of what she was planning - or why she kissed him, much less what she apologized for. "Kim, what..." Kim was already on her feet and running toward the lair through the dark underbrush. The quiet of the evening was shattered as sirens filled the air. Searchlights trained on the young teen's body as she streaked across the compound. Kim kicked at a door on the side of the building, and disappeared inside. Ron just crouched there, still confused by Kim's actions. "I guess I'm not the distraction this time," he muttered to Rufus, who shrugged his shoulders and sighed at him with a somewhat dejected look.   
  
Ron plopped down into a sitting position. Several minutes passed - then Ron turned toward the lair as a bright flash appeared in one of the windows near where Kim had entered. Then the window was blown out by an explosion. This was followed by an eruption that seemed to heave the very earth beneath Ron into the air and throw him onto his stomach. The entire lair had exploded! Ron covered his head as parts of the building and machinery rained down around him. It seemed like forever until the fallout stopped, and Ron raised his head. Drakken's lair was completely gone. Nothing remained but tatters.  
  
Ron leaped to his feet and ran toward where the building stood. He kept turning his head back and forth, looking for Kim to emerge from behind a crate, or some other part of the rubble. His head was whipped around by a familiar sound coming from over his left shoulder. The Kimmunicator! He ran to the sound, and lifted a couple of pallets to find it. No Kim. He pressed a button, and Wade's monitor-lit face appeared on the screen. "Are you guys all right??" Wade shouted. "I received a 6.2 seismic shock from your location a few minutes ago."   
  
"I...I think so." Ron stammered. Kim went into Drakken's lair, and a couple minutes later, the whole place just...blew up!"  
  
"Where's Kim? I mean, she made it out of there, right? Ron? Ron, can you hear me?"   
  
Ron didn't hear Wade. Rufus had grabbed his face and turned him toward part of the rubble. His gaze had become focused on something he saw near the corner of a pile of splintered crates. As he moved slowly closer, what he saw became clearer through the smoke - a leg, covered with shreds of cargo pants...and a black shoe. Ron ran over and began tearing at the crates, throwing them aside. Then he stopped, and all the color and expression was sapped from his face.  
  
"Ron! Are you there or what, dude?" Wade's voice screamed through the Kimmunicator. Ron's expression did not change, and his eyes didn't move. He just managed to utter "It's.....it's Kim," before dropping to his knees.  
  
"Kim? Well let me talk to her," Wade shouted. "I wanna know what she did to total Drakken's lair!"  
  
Ron said nothing, but raised the Kimmunicator, and turned it to face away from him. Wade's face dropped, and he took on the same expressionless, disbelieving stare that Ron had. Wade was now staring at the same thing Ron had found amongst the rubble of the lair - Kim Possible's lifeless form. Ron slowly reached down, moving her now-disheveled hair, and pressed a finger to her neck for a moment. Nothing. His hand continued on, and tried to straighten her hair and brush some of the dirt from her smooth skin, whispering repeatedly, "Kim...Kim...Kim Possible...Kim..."   
  
"Ron," said Wade, "This is wrong. This is just wrong. It can't be...it's not..."  
  
Ron curled his arms under the limp Kim, and scooped her up. Her head fell slack, and her mane of auburn hair spilled over his arm. "We've got to get her back to Middleton. Wade, get us a ride."  
  
"Ron, I think it's too late to do anyth-"  
  
"We can't do anything here. We need to get home. Wade, GET...US...A...RIDE. NOW."  
  
Wade pressed a few buttons. "Coast Guard chopper coming from the southeast. It's homing on the GPS signal from the Kimmunicator."  
  
"Thanks, Wade," said Ron, as Rufus pulled the Kimmunicator with him into Ron's pants pocket, giving short whimpers and uttering a faint "Kim" now and then. Ron walked through the gates of the fence, which were now askew, and to the small rise they had come from. Kim's hair rustled slightly in the gentle breeze of the Mexican evening. "Don't you worry, Kim," said Ron, looking down at the lifeless teen hero, as his tears started to flow. "Drakken's gonna pay, if he hasn't already. I swear this to you...if he wasn't in the lair...Drakken...is gonna pay." 


	5. Middleton Wake

The Next Day - Middleton Non-denominational Church:  
  
Everyone in Middleton attended Kim Possible's wake. The chapel was filled to standing room only. A quiet stream of somber organ music floated through the room. Seated in the first row were Kim's parents, Mrs. Possible with a veil over her face, Dr. Possible next to her, his face even more solemn than usual. Beside them were Jim and Tim, Kim's brothers, in matching charcoal suits. The next four or five rows of pews contained dignitaries and others from around the world - nearly everyone that Kim Possible had ever helped or saved. Kim was in a large white casket with brass trim, and a light pink satin lining the inside. Kim had been dressed in a midnight green gown. Her hair was perfect. Circumstances aside, anyone would think that she was merely sleeping. Even now, her face had that "Kimness" that she would forever be remembered for.  
  
On the other side of Kim's parents, close to the aisle, were Ron and Wade, both in black. Ron's hair was slicked back. They watched through reddened eyes as a steady stream of people filed up to the front of the chapel to view the open casket. Each person had their own words as they looked on the teen hero for the last time.  
  
Ned, the manager at Bueno Nacho: "Goodbye, Kim Possible. Even though you only worked for me a short time, nobody could push the button on the Nacho cheese dispenser like you."  
  
King Wallace, whose son Kim had saved from the Rodegan Knights: "Farewell, Kim Possible. I have named a day for you back in my country. Prince Wally and I shall truly miss you."  
  
Mr. Barkin, from Kim's school: "Sorry I had to give you detention, Possible. You didn't belong there. I wish I had been less tough, and more fair."  
  
Monique from Club Banana, and Kim's closest female friend: "I'm gonna miss you, girl. Whatever you put your mind to...nobody could do it like you did."  
  
Josh Mankey, Kim's sometime crush interest said nothing, but stared at Kim for a long while, then turned away, his head still low.  
  
Big Mike, never much for words: "Bye, Kim."  
  
The cheerleading squad came up together, tearfully, each of them touching Kim's hair, still struggling with the fact that they would never again follow her lead in the cheers. Finally, Bonnie Rockwaller, now the new cheerleader captain, approached the casket with one hand over her mouth, trying to contain her composure. She was beside herself. She looked at Kim for a long moment, choking back sobs. "I...I always wanted to be captain of the squad, but...but not like this! I'd give it all up, if only - God, Kim, *come back*!" She fell to her knees in uncontrollable sobs, tightly clutching the handles on the casket. Several other members of the squad helped her to her feet and led her away from the casket, her crying becoming more intense.  
  
Wade stood up and made his way to the casket. "Sure will be funny not tracking down and analyzing stuff for you anymore," he said. "It was way to early for you to go...but you went doing what you do best...and what you love most - saving the world."  
  
Finally, Ron stood up and slowly walked to where the teen hero lay. He looked down at his former fighting partner against crime. Rufus crawled from his jacket pocket, and jumped down onto the rail of the white casket, slowly stroking Kim's hand with his paw and sniffling.  
  
"You know I'm not good with words," Ron started. "Especially not at a time like this. What can I say? My partner...my best friend...the only person who ever really believed in me and stood by me...is gone. Why didn't you tell me what you were planning? I could have helped somehow. I could have at least tried to stop *this* from happening. Even Drakken wasn't worth losing you."  
  
Ron took one last lingering look at Kim...then stroked her hair lightly. "I know you're an angel now...because you sure were one here. If you can, come visit sometime."  
  
As the gathering of people began to exit the chapel, Ron turned to Wade and pulled the Kimmunicator from his jacket pocket. "I...I guess I won't be needing this anymore..."  
  
"I won't either, really," said Wade, brushing some remaining dirt from the screen of the small device. "I'm going to deactivate it, and put it on a shelf in my room. I've been getting thousands and thousands of hits on Kim's website with emails of condolence. I'm leaving the site up, and turning it into a tribute. It's the very least I can do."  
  
At that very second, the Kimmunicator beeped. Wade and Ron looked at each other in shock. Wade finally pressed a button, and Drakken's face filled the screen. "Sorry to bother you in your obvious time of grief," he sneered, "But I guess you know that this means I will own the world - and now there is nobody who can stop me. Give my regards to Kim Possible - and prepare for domination-"  
  
Ron stabbed the button, and the screen went dark. "He wasn't there!" he exclaimed. "He wasn't in the lair when it blew up!"   
  
Wade shook his head. "This is bad...this...is...bad."  
  
Ron became angry and clenched his fist tightly. "I made a promise to Kim," he said through gritted teeth. I don't care what I have to do anymore. I don't care what it takes...but...Drakken...is...gonna...PAY. Wade, trace that communication."  
  
Wade looked at Ron, who was nearly seething at this point. Ron looked into Wade's eyes. "It's the very least I can do."  
  
Two Hours Later:  
  
The chapel was dark, empty and silent. One of the tall doors at the back of the hall opened, and the figure of a small woman stepped inside, dressed in a long black cloak and hood, the clack of her heels echoing through the room as they walked toward Kim's casket. She stopped and slowly opened it, looking down on Kim's body. She lightly caressed Kim's hair and cheek, then pressed her little finger against Kim's forehead and, with her nail, etched a small serpentine "S" into the smooth skin.  
  
"So long...Kimmy," Shego hissed. "'Teen hero.' Should have quit while you were behind...maybe you'd still be here."  
  
Shego quietly closed the casket and turned to exit the chapel, muttering to herself, "'Teen hero' - pffft. Should have stuck to cheerleading..." 


	6. Showdown in New Orleans

Two Days Later - New Orleans - a warehouse in the French Quarter:  
  
Shego was at a computer terminal in one corner of the large two-story warehouse, pounding on a mouse. "Grrrrrr," she hissed. "With Kim Possible gone, this computer is my only frustration. I can make a laser drill go through the earth's crust, but I can't figure out email!"  
  
A door opened and closed at the far end of the warehouse. "That you, Dr. D? C'mere and help me get this program to work. Did you remember to get me chocolate?"  
  
"No chocolate today, Shego."  
  
Shego whipped her head around, then leaped out of her chair. At the door was not Drakken, as she had expected, but Ron Stoppable. He was dressed in his "mission duds" - cargo pants and a black shirt, and gloves. In one hand, Ron held a revolver, trained on the green vixen.  
  
"Kim Possible's sidekick??" said Shego. "How did you find- how did you get in - where - what are you doing with a gun? Put that down before you hurt yourself, uhhh...I can't for the life of me remember your name."  
  
"It's Ron. Ron Stoppable," he said, a scowl on his face. "Where's Drakken?"  
  
Shego pushed the chair away with her foot, clearing her space. "Put the gun down...Ron.   
You can't move fast enough to hit me."  
  
Ron pulled back the hammer on the pistol, not moving otherwise. "I said, where's Drakken??"  
  
"I don't know, he's out errr, getting groceries. Now put that down!"  
  
A door opened a few feet away, between Ron and Shego. The blue form of Dr. Drakken stepped inside, carrying a satchel and a grocery sack. "Shego, they didn't have caramel, so I got you butterscotch. They also had a great deal on apple...sauce..."  
  
Shego was pointing her finger at Ron. Drakken turned to the armed teen at the other end of the warehouse, who had now trained the gun on him. "Ahhh, the Buffoon," Drakken growled. "Come for revenge, I suppose."  
  
Ron steeled his gaze on Drakken. "If it wasn't for you, Kim would still be alive. I hold you personally responsible for the death of Kim Possible, even if you weren't in the lair in Cancun...and you...are...gonna...pay."  
  
Drakken looked at the floor. "Nooo, that would be a bad thing. We can't have that, now can we..." He called over his shoulder. "*Kim*!"  
  
Yet another door opened, this time closer to Ron - and through it stepped Kim Possible. Ron's jaw dropped - until he spotted the patch on her sleeve - "23." He turned the gun on her. Then another door opened. "24." Then another. And another. Several more "Kims" stepped into the warehouse, each with a patch on their shirt. Ron turned the gun to each of them as they appeared.  
  
"There now," Drakken sneered. "The party's all here. Now what was this about revenge?"  
  
"So we didn't get all the clones," said Ron.  
  
"All but seven, it would seem," replied Drakken. "One dispatched to your computer guru's house, and six with me while I was stealing some diamonds in Argentina. 29 in all."  
  
"Scratch the one at Wade's house," said Ron. "She's waxed. And why 29?"  
  
"It was a tribute to Shego," Drakken explained. "Her birthday is tomorrow, and I thought that the best gift I could give her would be to get Kim Possible out of our hair by ruining her reputation and making her give up that whole idea of 'saving the world."  
  
"Aww, Dr. D," Shego cooed. "You shouldn't have."  
  
"After all you've done for me? It was the very least I could do. And it seems that it worked out even better than I had hoped."  
  
"Man, I gotta find something extra-nice for your birthday."  
  
"Both of you, shut up!" Ron snapped. "There's not going to be any birthday party tomorrow for Shego, because she'll be in prison by then. And *you*...you've had your *last* birthday, Drakken." Ron scanned the room quickly. "Wait - I thought you said there were *six* of the clones with you. I only count five."  
  
"There are six," Drakken replied. "The other is...well...she's around her somewhere. Now, let's stop all this foolishness about 'revenge.' Give me the gun, *boy*."  
  
"No," growled Ron. "This ends - now. Shego's going to jail, and you're going to H-"  
  
"How *Dare* you speak to me that way!" Drakken shouted. "Weren't you ever taught anything about respecting your elders? Would you speak to your parents that way?" He motioned with a finger, curling it toward Ron. "Would you speak to your best friend...that way...?"  
  
The "Kim" standing nearest to Drakken began to walk slowly toward Ron, holding out her hand, her face taking on Kim's famous and effective "puppy dog pout." "C'mon, Ron," she purred in Kim's silky quiet voice. "You don't want to hurt anybody...especially not me...give me the gun and all is forgiven."  
  
Ron raised the gun to "Kim" with a now-unsteady hand. "Get away from me...you're not Kim," he stammered.  
  
"Kim" continued to advance. "Ron...I know you better than that. You're not like this. C'mon..."  
  
"NO! You're not Kim!" shouted Ron. "Get away from me!" With that, he pulled the trigger. The bullet hit "Kim" in the shoulder, and jerked "her" back. The round went straight through "Kim" and struck Drakken in the arm. "Yarrgggh," he yelled as he fell back against the wall. Shego raced to tend to him.  
  
"Kim" looked down at the bullet hole in "her" shoulder - then squared against Ron again, and kept walking toward him. "Why, Ron? Why??" "She" lowered "her" eyelids slightly, and looked deep into Ron's eyes. "Why would you do this, after all we've been through together? After all we mean to each other? Ron...don't do this...I love you..."  
  
The "Kim" was now close enough to reach out, and slowly remove the revolver from Ron's hand. Ron burst into tears, falling back onto the floor, repeating, "You're not Kim...Kim is dead...I found her in the lair...she's dead...you're not Kim..." "Kim" crouched down next to Ron, and with a soft "shhhhh," slowly put "her" hand around his throat and began to squeeze. Ron stared into "her" eyes, disbelieving.  
  
Shego and Drakken, his arm bandaged, appeared behind "Kim," "Aww, isn't this just precious," grinned Drakken. "The true courage and emotion of the 'sidekick' comes pouring out. Sooo touching...sooo heartfelt. Sooo...how would your late partner have put it...Sooo 'the drama'..."  
  
"*SO NOT*!!"  
  
The voice echoed out from an open second story window. Drakken looked up, his jaw slack. Shego did the same. Then Ron. Each of the "Kims" followed suit. Everyone shouted the same phrase:  
  
"*KIM POSSIBLE*!?!?"  
  
Kim was perched on the sill of the window, one arm raised and leaning against the window frame. Her shirt bore a patch - "29" - which she then tore off, and flung it to the floor at Drakken's feet. "Ron's right about one thing, Drakken," she said, pulling the Kimmunicator from the pocket of her cargo pants and setting it on a nail near the window frame. "This ends. Wade - *Now*!"  
  
Shego ground her teeth together. "Aww, dammit - it IS her!"  
  
A shrill noise emanated from the device, and the "Kims" all took on the same blank stare. Kim pulled a grappler from her backpack, and fired it at the opposite wall. It stuck with a solid "thunk."   
  
"Shego!" commanded Drakken. "Destroy that machine! The sonic frequency will destroy the clones!"  
  
"Gotcha," said Shego, and she ran across the warehouse to scale the wall.  
  
Kim swung down on the line, pulling another grappler from the pack with her other hand, and firing it at the "Kim" that had "her" hand on Ron's throat. "Leave my friend a-clone," she yelled. The hook drilled the "Kim" through the chest, and "she" instantly released "her" grip on Ron, then fell to the floor.   
  
Shego shimmied up a heat pipe to the window. She reached out to grab the Kimmunicator and smash it against the floor. "As always, nice try, Kimmy," she grinned evilly, "But not this tii-AAIIGGGHHH!" 60,000 volts burst from the Kimmuicator and raced through Shego's body. She lost her grip on the pipe and fell onto a stack of crates, smashing through two of them before losing consciousness.  
  
Kim flew down on the rope, landing both feet against the midsection of another of the "Kims," sending her crashing through the door she had entered earlier. She jumped on the back of a third and rammed "her" head into the computer desk Shego had been sitting at, screaming "*Not* the Kim!" "She" bounced up for a second, then slumped over the desk.  
  
The other two remaining "Kims" collapsed into each other, falling to the floor in a heap. Kim walked over to Drakken while dusting off her hands, and singing, "I am the One, the only One, I'm the Goddess of Kimdom Come." She grabbed Drakken by the arm, "Gimme the Prize," and looked at him with a wide grin. "I'm baaaaaack."  
  
"Indeed," sighed Drakken, as the sound of sirens approached. Several police cars screeched to a halt in front of the warehouse, and officers entered to cart Drakken and Co. off to jail.   
  
Two officers put cuffs on Drakken and led him to the door. Kim picked up the "29" patch and waked over to where two EMT's were pulling the unconscious Shego from the crates and onto a gurney. Kim licked the back of the patch and stuck it to Shego's forehead. "Happy birthday...bitch." 


	7. Epilogue

Kim was suddenly tackled blindside. She and her attacker landed to the floor with a big "Ooof." It was Ron, who was on top, with his hands pinning Kim's shoulders.  
  
"It's you!" he exclaimed.  
  
"It's me!" she replied  
  
"It's really you!"  
  
"It's really me!"  
  
"You're alive!"  
  
"I'm alive!"  
  
"You're not dead!"  
  
"I'm not dead!"  
  
"Boo-ya!!"  
  
"Boo-ya!!"  
  
Ron picked Kim from the floor in a tight embrace, bringing forth another "Oooof" from her. Ron then held her at arm's length. "Why did you play me like that, Kim? You played everybody! Everybody else in the world - including your family - thinks you're dead!"  
  
"I know," sighed Kim. "And that's wrong. I've got to fix that when we get back home."  
  
"Where did you go?" asked Ron. "What did you- How did you fake- Who was in your casket?? Who did I carry home?"  
  
"Must have been one of the clones in the lair."  
  
Ron nodded. Kim held out her hand and turned her thumb down. "Let us observe a moment for the eternally deactivated."   
  
Kim giggled and continued. That night outside the lair in Cancun, I decided the best way to stop Drakken was to get on the inside. I had to go undercover. And I just couldn't tell anybody."  
  
"Not even me?" quizzed Ron. "Your partner, sidekick, favorite distraction, and best friend?? No way would I have told anybody!"  
  
"Not even if Drakken had captured you and tortured you for answers?"  
  
"Good point," said Ron. "But...I watched the lair explode. And you didn't come out. How did you survive that??"  
  
"After I went into the lair, I found an explosives storage room down the hall...which was stupid. What villain puts an explosive storage room so close to an access door? Anyway, I lit a fuse to set off a chain reaction. I slid down a garbage chute before the lair exploded. After that, I waited until Drakken returned, and just acted like one of his clones. Just before they went to Argentina, I snuck back into Middleton, and got the Kimmunicator from Wade. Then I caught up with Drakken in Argentina. I used the Kimmunicator to deactivate 'Kim 29' and assume her 'identity.'" Then Kim looked up. Omigosh! The Kimmunicator! Be right back." Kim climbed up the heat pipe and retrieved the device, then slid down. "When we came back, I split away from the group and was ready to go in and take Drakken down. That's when I spotted you going in to the warehouse. I waited a bit, until the time was right, and, well...you know the rest." Kim then beeped Wade for a ride back home.   
  
"Let's go home, Ron," Kim grinned widely. "I believe I promised someone all the Nacos they can eat."  
  
"No you don't," said Ron. "You didn't say that. It was one of 'them'" he pointed to the inactive "Kims"  
  
"Yeah, I know," replied Kim. "But if anyone earned and deserves it, it's you."  
  
Ron looked at Kim. "I'm so glad you're here. You have no idea. But...please don't ever put me through an emotional roller-coaster like that again."  
  
"I promise," said Kim, and she put her arms around Ron. "Now you know why I kissed you and said 'I'm sorry' before I went into the lair. But I sure didn't mean to put you through all that drama. I wouldn't have if there had been another way."  
  
"You're alive, and you're back. That's the important thing," beamed Ron as they waited in a parking lot for the helicopter to arrive.  
  
"That's right. And now I have some major explaining to do," sighed Kim. "I suppose that Bonnie did cartwheels at my 'funeral,' and is now the new captain of the cheerleading squad."  
  
Actually, you're half right," said Ron. "She cried the loudest at the wake. She actually begged for you to come back. But she is the captain of the cheer squad."  
  
"Ohh, we so have to get home," Kim moaned. 


End file.
